ภาพประกอบ: Covid-19 infection numbers have surged in the Marshall Islands, just days after the Pacific nation recorded its first local spread of the virus. In the capital city of Majuro, total cases have nearly doubled since Friday. These latest figures mean one in ten of the city’s residents have been infected in recent days. On Sunday, Health Secretary Jack Niedenthal said about 75% of tests across the country were returning positive results. AFP

ภาพประกอบ: The Marshall Islands, which has a population of 59,000, was one of the last nations in the world to be untouched by Covid-19, before two cases were identified in October 2020. The pair had arrived from the US and were isolated from others. As recently as one week ago, it had seen no community transmission of the virus – meaning that Covid had not been detected passing from person to person. AFP

ภาพประกอบ: But on Monday, the first local spread was confirmed. The government responded by declaring a “state of health disaster”, closing schools and introducing a range of public health measures. The explosion in cases has seen the Marshall Islands shift from a “prevention to mitigation” strategy, Mr Niedenthal wrote in a Facebook update. AFP